Europe Travel Opening Up…

In addition to reading a lot of travel blogs, I also subscribe to several newsletters aimed at travel agents.  Recent headlines from one of those, Travel Agent Central, include:

• Italy Lifts Some Restrictions for Locals
• Lufthansa Group to Reactivate 80 Aircraft, Add Destinations in June
• Portugal to Begin Reopening This Month
• Spain Preparing to Reactivate Tourism at End of 2020
• Crystal River Cruises Unveils 2021 Atlas 
• Germany Eases Lockdown Measures

Not all of these stories are directly related to European travel, but they definitely show that Europe is on the move towards reopening for tourism, although maybe not for Americans.  The question is, will there be more bumps in the road?  I think that planning for international travel to open up this year may be a fantasy.

Other blogs/travel writers are carrying headlines like:

• Eurozone Opening for Business
• Europe’s Schengen Zone Tourism in September?
• Why your summer vacation to Greece looks promising
• EU Promises a Summer Tourist Season
• Europe For Fall/Winter From $168 Roundtrip

What that looks like is another question.  What types of restrictions may be applied?  Yes, you may be able to fly there but will hotels, restaurants, museums and all the other tourism must-haves be open?  What happens if there is a COVID-19 second wave as has happened with past pandemics?  The European Union has requested that member states extend the current 30-day restriction on non-essential travel.

The existing controls apply to the “EU+” countries, which include:  Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

I have a vested interest in Europe being ready to open up since I have a Christmas markets river cruise scheduled for the second week of December going from the Netherlands to Switzerland and then visiting friends in Salzburg, Austria for a few days.  Since we already canceled one European trip this year, I would really hate to cancel a second.

One of the interesting things that’s happened in Europe as a result of COVID-19 is that individual countries have regained control of their borders; the European Union isn’t calling the shots anymore.

So if we’re allowed to board in Amsterdam and Germany says we can’t disembark in Cologne or France says we can’t get off in Strasbourg, the river cruise part of our trip may be a major letdown.  We have cancel-for-any-reason trip insurance, so we’re covered but hoping we don’t need to use it.  Fingers crossed.

Brian

As an avid traveler, Brian has explored and enjoyed cultural encounters in over 40 countries while spending many years refining The Points Game — using credit card sign-up bonuses and other tricks to get nearly free travel.  Getting the most out of every trip is an art and Brian launched My Travel Traxx to help others enjoy the art of travel.